Mechanicsburg man charged with vehicular homicide after driving twice the speed limit

CUMBERLAND COUNTY, Pa. (WHP) — A man from Mechanicsburg has been charged with vehicular homicide, among other charges, after driving nearly double the speed limit and killing another driver. On September 4, an officer with the Silver Spring Police Department was dispatched to West Trindle Road for a report of a two-vehicle crash with entrapment. Upon arriving at the scene, the officer saw two vehicles , both with front end damage.

One vehicle had come to rest in the front yard of a residence, according to the affidavit. The officer spoke to one of the drivers, Mackenzie Hilsinger, who said he had been driving a gray 2017 Ford. Hilsinger told the officer that the other car, the one in the front yard, had been pulling out of the driveway, and he didn’t have time to stop before hitting it.

The officer then went to look at the other car. He spoke with the Captain of the Kingstown Fire Department, who reported that the driver of this vehicle had gone into cardiac arrest, and crews were attempting life saving measures. According to documents, it also appeared that the Fire Department had to extricate this driver, later identified as Gregory Maloni, out of his vehicle.

Maloni was transported to Holy Spirit Hospital by Silver Spring EMS, where officers learned he passed away. A sergeant with the Silver Spring Police advised the responding officer that there was video footage of the crash, courtesy of a neighbor’s security camera. Police were able to secure a copy of the video.

On September 5, police teamed up with a State Police Collision Analysis and Reconstruction Specialist to download the cars’ “black boxes” and complete a reconstruction report on the crash. Officials attended the autopsy for the victim on September 7, 2023. The Coroner advised officers that the victim had died as a result of multiple traumatic injuries that were a result of the crash, according to the report.

Later that day, an officer met with Hilsinger to get a more detailed account of the crash. Hilsinger told the officer that he was traveling to a work-related appointment on the day of the crash in Carlisle. According to the affidavit, Hilsinger said he was running late for his 5:00p.m appointment, leaving from a Labor Day appointment in Mechanicsburg, and he believed he was traveling at approximately 50 miles per hour.

Police say crews were dispatched at approximately 4:57 p.m., and the posted speed limit where the crash occurred is 45 miles per hour. Police obtained the black boxes from the vehicles and a search warrant of Hilsinger’s phone by November 10, according to the affidavit. According to information obtained from the search warrant, detectives found that Hilsinger was sent a text message in a group at 4:48 p.m. on the day of the crash, that said he may be five minutes late because his kids woke up late.

Officers also say that the black boxes revealed that approximately 5 seconds before collision, Hilsinger’s car was traveling 81 miles per hour. At the time of impact, records show that Hilsinger’s vehicle was traveling between 60.7 and 64.7 mph. The State Police collision specialist advised that at the speed Hilsinger was traveling at, there was not enough distance for him to stop before crashing.

As a result, Mackenzie has been charged with two felony charges of Homicide by Vehicle and Aggravated Assault by Vehicle, plus Reckless Driving and Driving at Safe Speed.

He is currently out on ROR.